Forging The Ultimate Sword
by Soxman
Summary: Through a twist of fate, Naruto is gifted with the Rinnegan from the sealing of the Kyuubi. Afterwards, Danzo takes him and trains him to be Konoha's ultimate weapon. But what happens when Danzo's methods backfire and Naruto is cast adrift?
1. Chapter 1

AN: I've been reading a lot of Naruto fanfiction lately. Over the course of some of the fics I read, I liked the version of Naruto becomes truly superpowered. I personally like superpowered Naruto fics, so, I was thinking about this a while back; what the most superpowered, non-god, independent Naruto would look like. When I say independent, I do mean independent from Konoha, because of how a superpowered Naruto would be treated in his village. In the course of thinking about this, I came up with this a while back. So here it is, a one-shot where Naruto is powerful, superpowered-even, and, in effect "cast adrift." Thank you for reading, I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy this.

The Third Hokage bent his head low over the crib, just staring at the tiny blonde baby that now held the nine-tailed fox demon within the seal on his stomach. He sighed, knowing exactly how complicated an already dire situation had become. The baby cried a little and opened its eyes to stare at the elderly former Hokage, who would soon resume the role as village leader. The Third stared back into the baby's eyes, noting the concentric circles around the pupil, along with the purple iris, which heralded the most legendary doujutsu of all time; the Rinnegan.

The Hokage sighed again as he gently quieted the baby. Truthfully, he had no idea what the strange pattern in his eyes had meant before his student, Jiraiya, had properly identified it. He thought, perhaps it was just a side effect of the sealing. Now that he knew the truth, he would rather he didn't, because others knew as well.

Jiraiya had told him what he knew of the Rinnegan. How he had encountered a boy in Amegakure with it who was also supposed to fulfill some prophecy. How the doujutsu was supposed to allow the user to use any elemental jutsu. How even he, the Great Toad Sage, did not know the full extent of the Rinnegan's abilities. Sadly, the revelations had not been in private, as the Kyuubi attack and the death of the Fourth had not allowed them that luxury. Even now, word was spreading around the village that the boy who held the nine-tailed fox also possessed a doujutsu shared with the Sage of Six Paths.

Which brought him to his present action; waiting. In a few hours there would be a full council meeting to discuss the tragic recent events that had been inflicted upon the village. But before then, his old rival, Danzo Shimura had requested an urgent meeting. The Third sighed, he already knew what Danzo wanted, to protect Konoha the only way he knew; by taking Naruto and turning him into a weapon for the village. Why couldn't his old rival just see the truth of the Will of Fire?

"Hokage-sama! Danzo-sama is here for your meeting!" His receptionist shouted.

The Hokage grimaced. "Send him in, please," he declared, retaking his seat. He was not looking forward to this meeting at all. In the aftermath of the Kyuubi rampage, many in the village were calling for the death of the Jinchuuriki, thinking that it was somehow the embodiment of the demon fox, and that it would one day return for its revenge. He needed the political capital Danzo possessed in order to put down the panic, but the price was going to be high: especially for poor Naruto. His stubborn side was telling him he could get by without Danzo's support, but the reality was that any such victory would be pyrrhic.

Danzo ambled into the room and swiftly took the seat opposite the Hokage. He turned his head slightly to look at Naruto, before turning back to the Third. "Hokage-sama, I come here today to make a serious request of you, one I wish I would never have to ask." The Hokage said nothing but nodded for Danzo to continue. "That boy," he gestured at Naruto, "The container of the nine-tailed fox, the possessor of the legendary Rinnegan, is the last hope for our village!" The Hokage raised his eyebrows slightly. "In the wake of the attack, we have lost many strong ninja and… our Hokage." There was an undeniable hint of sadness in his tone. "The other Hidden Villages, Kumo and Iwa in particular, could use this tragedy as an opportunity to take their revenge against us. In the interests of self-preservation, and the protection of Konoha, I humbly request that the care of Naruto be entrusted to me, to be trained as a weapon in the protection of our beloved village!"

The Third stared at him levelly. "I am afraid that I must refuse your request. This is-"

Danzo interrupted him by doing something Sarutobi had never seen him do in all the years he'd known the war hawk; Danzo lost his cool. Normally, Danzo angrily banging on his desk while jumping to his feat would be cause enough for the Third to summon the Anbu and have him removed. However, this was the aftermath of the Kyuubi attack, and to be frank, the Third needed Danzo and his rapport among the many civilian factions who would soon be calling for the death of the "demon."

"Hokage-sama, if I may speak freely in this time of crisis." The third, already having decided that he needed Danzo's support to help Naruto survive, nodded his slightly to signal that his old rival had the one-time privilege of speaking freely to the Hokage of the village. "This boy, Naruto Uzumaki, is the remnants of the Fourth's legacy. Kushina passed this evening, she couldn't recover." Danzo paused solemnly, as if allowing a moment of silence on her behalf despite his dislike of her in life. The Fourth's eyebrows rose in surprise as he realized that Danzo actually knew Naruto's true origins. After this crisis had passed, he was going to have to do something about the many security leaks in his village.

"Despite that fact, we must not be blind to what must be done. The Fourth served this village way for many years, and even in death, he sealed the strongest of the tailed demons into his own child. It is admirable, praiseworthy, and noble that he would make such a sacrifice for his village, but not so that he forced his son to as well." Sarutobi's eyes rose, if possible, even higher up on his forehead. "Jinchuuriki. It is appropriate that that term means quite literally "power of human sacrifice." For, and there is no way around this, the Fourth did sacrifice his son in the hopes that he would be able to use the demon's power to protect his beloved village. The Fourth, for reasons we may never comprehend, decided to make this sacrifice and, I would bet unintentionally, also managed to bestow upon his son the legendary gift and curse of the Rinnegan."

Danzo cleared his throat. "With that sacrifice, the Fourth marked his son for a hard life- which will be made harder by his possessing a doujutsu with powers even the most well-versed Shinobi can't comprehend. Many times have I disagreed with you over the too-peaceful path you wished to maintain, the status quo between our village and other hostile hidden villages that would only be a detriment to our power in the long run. However, despite my disgust, and the measures I took, including the formation of the ROOT, I merely wished to counterbalance your love, and your successor's love, of the status quo, and prevent the peaceful times from ending by disposing of threats that may have grown exponentially throughout the years. Despite both of our best efforts, the time of peace is over and enemies now lurk at our doorstep."

"With our moment of weakness, with the loss of so many from our Shinobi forces, with the damage to the village, Iwa and Kumo may take this opportunity for revenge unless we have a deterrent. Despite the wishes of the Fourth that his child should be seen as a hero, he himself has already made the choice that his son is to be a sacrifice. With this choice, his son must become a sacrifice for our village in its darkest hour."

"Even if you reject my request, this sacrifice will occur, just in a different manner. Rather than sacrificing the boy's childhood to protect our village, you will be sacrificing his humanity to satisfy these villagers. The people of Konoha, though they are normally rational and kind and understanding, will not take kindly to you attempting to force the perceived "demon" upon them. A demon with strange and powerful eyes will only do more to infuriate the villagers and make them hate him."

"It is with this situation in mind that I request to train him as a weapon of Konoha. I believe that your plan to try and let him live a normal life will not work, and will also have the dual effect of undermining your position and strength as Hokage for being seen as protecting the demon. Our enemies lurk at the gates, ready to use this opportunity to attack us unless we muster a show of force. I will not lie to you Hokage-sama, I think your dreams for the Fourth's son having a peaceful life are just that; dreams"

"Therefore, by allowing me to train Naruto as a weapon, we can work together to eradicate these problems. With the support I possess, I can use my influence to convince the villagers that by training him and keeping him under constant guard, we are taking every precaution to protect them. Additionally, Konoha gains a weapon it so desperately needs, which will serve to deter any thoughts of a Fourth Shinobi war. Finally, even though the sacrifice on his part will be more than any boy should have to bear, Naruto will be a trained weapon of Konoha, and thus, able to protect the village and defend in a manner that his father deemed appropriate."

With his soliloquy done and his opening arguments presented, Danzo sat back to allow the Third his time to argue. Perhaps he should have included more about the power of the Rinnegan in his speech, but considering how all he knew for certain was that it allowed the user to use all types of elemental chakra, including nature transformation abilities only otherwise accessible to bloodlines like hyoton, but considering the nature of the argument, this was perhaps unnecessary.

The Hokage took a puff from his pipe as he began to speak. "I believe I understand your thinking Danzo, but I do not believe it to be correct. I have faith that the villagers will come to see Naruto as a hero. In fact-"

Danzo, indignant over the blindness of the Hokage, thrust his hand into his pocket and tossed a battered pamphlet on the Third's desk. "These are the villagers you have faith in!" he snarled, letting his voice rise. "Sarutobi, you can't possibly be this blind! In this pamphlet, which is impressive work considering the short amount of time that the villagers knew that Naruto has had the demon sealed in him, the reasons for why he must be executed immediately are made quite convincingly and compellingly as to incite the civilian population." He sighed quietly. "I understand as a former and future Hokage, you wish to believe in the population. But these people, Shinobi and civilians alike, have lost too much to the Kyuubi attack to let go of their hate anytime soon. Subversive material like this pamphlet is proof enough that the villagers will not overlook their hate unless they have faith that the village authority is handling the matter and protecting them."

The Third stared at the pamphlet blankly, and then hesitantly reached a hand out towards it. For a few moments, he skimmed through, finding what Danzo said to be a pretty accurate assessment of the village's sentiments. The damning proof he mentioned were the accredited authors of the pamphlet, ranging from prominent Shinobi to wealthy civilians, all whom supported one message: death to the "demon". With such influence calling for his death, Naruto would have few if any supporters among the populace. He could not help but feel appalled that the village felt this way, but at the same time, he now better understood Danzo's position.

"Perhaps you are right about the village's sentiments. I had hoped, perhaps as an idealistic Hokage, that this village could look past this tragedy, and unite around him towards a better future. However, such hate," he gestured to the pamphlet, "Is hard to dispel, and not something I am willing to risk Naruto's life in doing."

Danzo leaned forward. "If circumstances had been different, I would have perhaps talked about the possibility of a clan taking him in. However, in these troubled times, I am not sure who can be trusted with his safety, and thus, that it was I ask for him to be entrusted to me." Danzo leaned back. "I will not lie, Hokage-sama," the Hokage raised his eyebrows with Danzo's apparent return to formality, "My training will be brutal, and its intent will be making Naruto into the best weapon possible to defend Konoha. Already, I have heard that the boy's godfather, who would also have been an acceptable choice to raise him, has skipped out on his responsibilities. Despite the brutality of his training, and the emotionless it will bring about, I will keep him safe, for he is Konoha's best defense. It is not appealing, not attractive, and not idealistic, but you know exactly what I want the boy for, and what I will do in return. You will get no similar offer from the villagers of Konoha, as entrenched as they are in their hate."

The Hokage sighed. "I believe you are correct that I can't trust the civilian populace with his life. I believe you are correct about the clans, though some like the Hyūga and Uchiha will demand to be entrusted with his guardianship. I do not however, wish to condemn Minato's sacrifice to-"

"As I have already stated, Hokage-sama, by using Naruto as the container and forcing him to become a Jinchuuriki, the Fourth has done just that, whether he meant to or not. As I said, by placing him in my care, I will remove him from the populace's eye, thus reducing their hate towards him over time, and I will train him, which, whether it goes well or not, can be used to give the impression that he is under careful watch and that we are willing to protect the civilians, despite our contrary beliefs about their concerns. With this sacrifice, we protect the village, protect the villagers, and protect Naruto."

The Hokage sat back. "Supposing that I agreed to this, you would be willing to support me in diffusing the villager's anger?" Danzo nodded. "You would withdraw your opposition towards-"

"Hokage-sama, nothing is more important to me than being allowed to train Naruto. With the power of the nine-tailed fox and the legendary Rinnegan, I can train a weapon ready to protect Konoha for the next century. I will give my political support in every area that I am able," Danzo finished.

"You will allow me to look in on his training?" The Third asked shrewdly.

"I would rather you did not, because as I have said, I do not believe you have the stomach to go through with this, but yes, if you desire it, I will allow you to watch or send an agent in your place," Danzo declared, his voice rising slightly as if he detected he was about to win this argument.

"Danzo, in these troubled times, I have no choice, apparently but to entrust Naruto Uzumaki, the son of the Fourth, to your care to be trained as a weapon for Konoha. I will, periodically, check up on his training, but I shall allow you to use the methods you find appropriate, as distasteful as it is for me."

"Hokage-sama, I am grateful for the trust you have shown towards me." He walked over to the crib containing the baby. "With your blessing, I shall undertake this task in defense of Konoha and the will of fire!"

The Hokage watched him leave with an innocent baby in tow, already feeling the costs of sacrificing the needs of the few for the many in this instance.

* * *

"Before we begin this meeting, I wish to have a moment of silence for the deceased Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, an honorable man, both in life and in death. May his soul rest with the Shinigami," The Third gave way to the moment of silence.

After the moment had passed, the Third cleared his throat. "This meeting is called to order. Now then, the first matter would be what to do with Naruto Uzumaki."

Immediately after he finished, calls came from both the civilian and Shinobi sides to have Naruto put down before the "demon" could be unleashed. The Hokage sighed and massaged his temple, suddenly feeling better about entrusting Naruto's care to Danzo.

"Hokage-sama, if I may?" Danzo stood up and requested the floor. He turned to face the rest of the council. "Many of you know of me and my reliability, so please listen. I have consulted with experts on fūinjutsu on this matter. The practice of a demon being sealed into a child's body, though rare, is not unheard of, proof being the two Jinchuuriki in Kumo's possession. In addition, all whom I have consulted about the boy's seal were quite pleasantly surprised at its stability and strength. However, knowing that this council has valid concerns as well over their safety and the safety of the village, I move that the boy should be entrusted to me to make sure that the demon has no chance to break free."

Uproar ensued once more after Danzo finished speaking. After a few seconds, the Third began shouting for order.

"We will have order!" After the rowdy council had quieted down, he turned towards Danzo. "You wish to have Naruto trusted to your care?" Danzo nodded.

"Hokage-sama!" An indignant civilian jumped up from his chair. "How can we possibly allow that thing-"

"Because, Foriniko-san," Danzo spoke to one of his constituents, "The seal the Fourth used dissipates the Kyuubi's chakra over time. That is why Minato did not simply reseal it into his wife, the former Jinchuuriki." Danzo ignored the shock his revelation caused. "If Naruto were to be killed in say, the next ten years, then not enough of the Kyuubi would have dissipated, and it would, once again, be unleashed. Do you wish the village to be attacked once more?" Danzo asked coldly.

Foriniko broke out in a cold sweat. "No, not at all, but-"

"It is our enemies who would wish to harm Naruto and unleash the Kyuubi. Are you with Iwa, Furiniko-san?" Danzo asked rhetorically. "Only they would wish him harm, in the hopes of unleashing the destruction the freed Kyuubi would reign upon our village once more. His protection is paramount, for he imprisons the beast. Thus, I will take it upon myself to train Naruto to defend himself and his village, as the Fourth would desire."

The Third smirked internally, wondering why it never occurred to him to use such a clever bluff to keep the civilians in line. Perhaps it was the Will of Fire that Danzo was to train Naruto after all. "There is also the problem that though ten years should be enough to prevent the Kyuubi from being released upon Naruto's death, the demon, clever as it is, will try and seek freedom. By having Shinobi like Danzo stationed around him, we will repel its attempts to coerce Naruto into freeing it. Thankfully, due to the strength of the seal, the only possible way the Kyuubi can attempt such a thing is if Naruto is in a state of high emotional anxiety. Thus Danzo, who is known for instilling lack of emotion in those he trains, is the perfect candidate to entrust Naruto with."

The normally emotionless Hiashi, head of the Hyūga clan, rose to his feet to address the assembled. "I find myself agreeing with Danzo-san and Hokage-sama. Naruto must be placed in Danzo's care. To not do such a thing would be to allow Iwa a chance to strike at us once more. As such, I move to a vote: to entrust Naruto into Danzo-san's care."

Swiftly, a firm majority of hands went up around the room to support the motion. The few who hadn't voted, upon seeing the looks they were getting from their comrades, also raised their hands in support.

The Third rose once more. "Then with unanimous consent, I entrust the care of Naruto Uzumaki, container of the nine-tailed demon, to Danzo Shimura. Now, the next topic of business is-"

* * *

"Congratulations, Danzo-sama!" Dajimu declared as Danzo walked back into the Root headquarters to check on Naruto.

Danzo nodded curtly at his underling. "Has Jun finished placing the seals on Naruto?" he asked as he walked towards Naruto's room.

"Hai, Danzo-sama. The loyalty, silencing, focusing, suppression, and emotional-detachment seals have all been successfully placed on his back, with no detrimental effects," The Root agent reported.

Danzo entered the room, and walked over to the makeshift crib that held Naruto to examine the seal on his back.

"I tied the seals together, Danzo-sama, to strengthen their power. Only an extreme emotional outburst could cause a failure, and with his emotions sealed, that isn't possible," Root agent Jun explained.

Danzo nodded once more. "You have both served me well. For now, training him must be put on hold in favor of letting him grow. However, I do have one task for both of you." Both Root members turned to attention. "The Uchiha clan had a hand in the Kyuubi attack, of that I am sure, and Naruto, as our ultimate weapon, does not have the edge necessary to deal with them."

"The legendary Mangekyō Sharingan could be used to neutralize our ultimate weapon, just as it allowed the Uchiha to have Kyuubi attack the village. Thus, steps must be taken, and only a Sharingan can neutralize the threat of a Sharingan. Destroy all genetic material in our inventory except for Sharingan material, as is per our arrangement with the Hokage, and begin experimenting on it. If all else fails, we shall implant that genetic material into Uzumaki and hope that he either develops a resistance to the Sharingan, or integrates it with the help of the demon."

"Hai Danzo-sama!" Both Root nins exclaimed as they rushed off to fulfill Danzo's orders. Danzo gently placed Naruto back in his crib, and began walking towards the exit.

"Tonight, Namikaze-san, you shall sleep, but soon, your training will begin. I only hope you become as great a weapon as I envision you to be," Danzo finished as he walked out of the room and shut off the light. Behind him, Naruto Uzumaki, unknown son of the Fourth Hokage, bearer of the Rinnegan, and soon-to-be weapon of Konoha, slept peacefully unaware of the fate that soon awaited him.

* * *

_Three Years Later_

"Hokage-sama, you have requested that I keep you updated on Naruto's progress," Danzo stated as their meeting began. He and Danzo had not met in three years, because, as Danzo said, there was no point in discussing training a baby. Now Naruto was ready to begin, and this meeting was for the Hokage to hear what Danzo was going to be teaching him.

"What have you done thus far in regards to his training?" The Hokage asked while taking a puff of his pipe.

Danzo straightened up himself in his chair. "Thus far, I have not begun his actual training. However, I have used these past few years to feed Naruto the most nutritious diet possible, and I have had people teaching him to read. He has progressed well to the point where he can read things that are expected of children twice his age."

Danzo rubbed his bandages. "I have just finished running Naruto through a series of tests. Surprisingly, for one with such large chakra reserves, his control is very good, above-average even. His speed, strength, and ability to dodge are undeveloped, as expected from one so young with no training. His stamina, however, is very impressive. I have also noted, from administering vaccination shots and the like, that Naruto apparently possesses regenerative abilities. He shows no particular interest in one type of weapon, meaning he shall be trained in how to use several, and then choose when he is older. As expected from a Rinnegan bearer, he has affinities to all the elements, and with more training, perhaps the elemental subgroups as well. He displays fine intellect, good learning capabilities, and an outstanding ability to think on his feet. Strategy-wise, he remains untested, but all signs indicate positive results in this area. Finally, his stealth is untested."

The Hokage stared at him levelly. "Quite extensive testing Danzo," he commented.

"I take my responsibility to train him very seriously", Danzo replied. He leaned in, and signaled for the Hokage to send the Anbu out of the room. The Hokage nodded and signaled for them to leave. Once they had left, Danzo resumed speaking. "We are both on the same page regarding Uchiha involvement in the Kyuubi attack?"

The Hokage nodded slightly. "We are both aware of the rumors, and perhaps a bit more. The Uchiha have proven themselves a considerable thorn in my side since the attack, and all of the intelligence I have gathered leads in that direction as well. As much as I did not want to believe one of our most notorious clans would do such a thing, I too find myself believing that they were behind the attack, and that they are perhaps, preparing to attack again."

Danzo leaned back, apparently satisfied. "The reason I bring this up is because of Naruto. Even though I promised to make him the best weapon possible for our village, I can't help but fear for the Uchiha capabilities in once more releasing the Kyuubi, or attempting to subvert the beast within. Measures must be taken to neutralize this threat."

The Hokage's eyes rose dangerously. "What are you suggesting?" he asked evenly.

"To be blunt, Naruto needs a way to neutralize the Sharingan. Despite its powers, the Rinnegan can not be trusted to adequately defend him if Naruto finds himself in conflict with a Sharingan user. Or at least, we do not know enough to trust it to the task, despite the Sharingan being derived from it. Fortunately, I have found a few ways to approach this problem," Danzo stated.

The Hokage was now honestly curious. "Oh? How can the threat of the Sharingan be neutralized?" he asked politely.

"The first and most obvious answer is with another Sharingan." He saw the dark look on the Hokage's face. "Yes, I know what you are thinking. I have in fact done the testing, and I have looked at the results, though none were harmed in doing so- I am not Orochimaru. I am willing to face punishment for doing this, though I will assert it is in the village's best interests. Suffice it to say, after testing the Sharingan and Rinnegan, as was expected, they are compatible, my people have uncovered no adverse affects in the implementation process, and doing it would neutralize the threat posed."

"I will admit that this would be the solution I desire, for obvious reasons. However, knowing that you are the leader of this village, I have prepared a few alternative suggestions." With that, Danzo passed a scroll over detailing other options for dealing with this setback. There were some other viable alternatives, like teaching Naruto to fight without handseals and by watching his opponent's feet, but it was clear what Danzo wanted. For as long as the Third knew Danzo, he had also known of the man's admiration and respect for the prized doujutsu of the Uchiha clan. This was his chance to finally have one under his control, or so the Third thought.

"Danzo, I have been very lenient towards some of your… practices," the Hokage growled, as his eyes scanned the "research" results. "Despite your good intentions, I will fine you heavily for this."

"I will happily pay the fine. Do you agree with my proposal?" Danzo asked. "Considering the sacrifices already made, this is just one more thing that must be done to keep the village truly safe."

"Get out of my sight!" The Hokage growled. "If you are so insistent on following the path of my former student, then by all means, further twist this innocent child."

Danzo got to his feet and walked to the door. "It's not like he has not already been sacrificed to keep this village safe. This is just the best way to use this sacrifice to its fullest," Danzo declared softly as he left the room.

* * *

"Danzo-sama, the operation was a success," Terai, another of his Root agents, stated as he walked into the room.

"The Sharingan has been integrated?" Danzo clarified excitedly.

"It has, Danzo-sama. Already three tomoe appeared and are overlapping the concentric circles of the Rinnegan," Terai explained.

Danzo stood up. "The Sharingan has been fully activated?" His medic-nin soldier nodded. "His body is stable?"

"Hai, Danzo-sama. He is responding to it almost like he is an Uchiha." Danzo stared thoughtfully- perhaps the demon fox had an interest in adding a new weapon to its arsenal. "We are prepared to test him once more to see his new capabilities."

"Then proceed," Danzo ordered.

A short time later, Naruto was awake and being tested. He initially had some trouble moving when he first woke up, probably due to the effects the Sharingan was having on his body, but seemed to adapt quickly to the new conditions. He was being tested exclusively in chakra output, control, and his physical attributes this time, to make sure the Sharingan was not inhibiting his body from fighting at an optimal level.

"Danzo-sama, we are pleased to report that the Sharingan does not significantly drain his chakra, nor does it adversely affect his physical abilities. On the contrary, it apparently augments his speed and reflexes. Additionally, the Sharingan also seems to slightly enhance his chakra control. Naruto himself seems to be in fine condition after the operation," Terai finished.

"Send him in please," Danzo requested politely.

A few moments later, Terai returned with Naruto in tow. "Here he is, Danzo-sama."

"How are you feeling Naruto?" Danzo asked kindly.

"Well, thank you, Danzo-sama," Naruto replied with no emotion in his young tone.

"Excellent. Tomorrow, you start your training. For now, you should rest and properly recover," Danzo ordered.

"Hai, Danzo-sama. Will that be all?" Naruto asked blandly.

Danzo nodded. "Have a good rest, and be ready for tomorrow," Danzo said as Naruto was ushered away.

* * *

_One Year Later_

"How is his training going?" The Hokage asked Danzo evenly.

Danzo looked into his eyes. "Better than in my wildest dreams," he answered simply.

The Hokage's eyebrows rose. "Surely that is an exaggeration?"

"No," Danzo answered. "With his ability to use the Sharingan as well as the Rinnegan, his learning rate has accelerated rapidly; far better than I had calculated. All of our training this past year has centered on chakra control, weapons use, Taijutsu, and basic elemental manipulation. Which leads me to another request: I wish to teach Naruto the shadow clone technique."

The Hokage sighed. "Why, exactly, do you wish this?"

"For obvious reasons," Danzo replied. "Suffice it to say, the fighting capabilities it will give Naruto, as well as the further acceleration of his training due to the abilities of the jutsu, are invaluable. Additionally, with his ever-growing chakra reserves, this technique will serve to put a literal army at our fingertips. Finally, I can promise you, Hokage-sama, this will be my last request in regards to training Naruto."

The Hokage sighed. "I will hold you to that Danzo. Bring Naruto in and I shall teach him personally."

Danzo stood up smiling, "Wait here and I will be back shortly, Hokage-sama."

A few minutes later, Danzo returned with Naruto in tow. "Hokage-sama, it is an honor," Naruto bowed in an empty tone of voice.

The Hokage nodded sadly, trying to keep his face blank. "Now then, please watch carefully." The Hokage proceeded to perform the justu to cause a solid clone to appear right next to him. "Now you try."

The Hokage then spent the next few minutes correcting Naruto's use of the technique until finally; Naruto could perform the Shadow clone jutsu. "Thank you Hokage-sama," Naruto said after he had finally learned the technique.

"You're welcome, Naruto," the Hokage said as Danzo ushered him out of the room. He took a long puff from his pipe after they had left. "I should have forced Jiraiya to take him in."

* * *

_Three Years Later_

"Success, Danzo-sama," a seven year old Naruto reported to his superior in the shadows of his base. He then began summarizing the events his mission. His initiation assignment had been the assassination of a Tea Country merchant who was leading an underground campaign to undermine Konoha's interests in the area. The youngest member of the Root had been dispatched to send a message that such subversive actions would not be tolerated; in this case, the message was the merchant's head on a pike.

"You have done well, Naruto," Danzo said. He meant it in more ways than one. Naruto was easily among his most powerful soldiers at this point, with his superb Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Kenjutsu abilities, along with passable Genjutsu abilities and even a few useable emergency medical techniques; the wonders of superb chakra control. With the shadow clone technique, combined with the Sharingan and the Rinnegan, coupled with the nine-tailed fox, Naruto had easily reached Anbu strength levels under Danzo's guidance. Now it was time for the next stage of his training.

He signaled Torune to open the door. A young brown-haired boy with a thin face, a thin frame, and grey eyes entered from the shadows. "This is Hideki; he shall serve as your partner on future assignments, as per Root protocol."

"Hai, Danzo-sama," Naruto replied emotionlessly.

"Are you two ready for your next assignment?" Danzo asked, mentally weighing his options. On the one hand, the Uchiha clan had to be taken care of, but Itachi had volunteered for that job, he was better placed to carry out the assignment, and he was skilled enough that he didn't need back up. On the other hand, he needed more intelligence on Kumo's lightning techniques, and it was a perfect mission to get this pair's feet wet.

"Hai," came two detached voices.

"Excellent. As you both know, there are two Jinchuuriki in Lightning Country, so stay clear of them while you both…"

* * *

_Three Years Later_

"Success, Danzo-sama," a ten year old Naruto stated as he began his report on the investigation of recent happenings in Wave Country, including the rise of the tyrant-businessman Gato. Hideki stood next to him silently as Naruto gave the complete report. Both were dressed in all black garb, to make it easier to blend in with the shadows on this espionage assignment. After he finished reporting, both stood while Danzo mused.

"You have both done admirably," Danzo stated. He sighed heavily as his eyes flickered between the two. "I had hoped this day would not come, but it's here anyway. Today marks the day of full initiation into the Root," his gaze was fixed on both boys, "For one of you," he finished. Blank stares met his own. "You shall both fight to the death, and the one left standing shall be a fully-fledged member of this organization."

Despite the seals on Naruto that were supposed to restrict his emotions, he gazed at Hideki with definite sorrow in his heart. Hideki had been his comrade, his loyal supporter, his… friend even. Even if he couldn't really comprehend his situation in his present state, he felt a kind of attachment to his partner that was unbecoming of a Root agent. And now, he would have to kill him; it was as Danzo-sama wished.

Both Naruto and Hideki followed Danzo to the arena where Root initiations occurred. It was dark and dank; perfect for a fight in the shadows. Yet, it was also as big as a Grand Ballroom, with the only part of it not devoted to combat being the stands where Danzo and his guards sat and watched in morbid curiosity. Both young warriors took positions opposite each other, readying themselves for Danzo's signal to start.

"Hajime!" Danzo shouted, and both Root agents leapt into action.

* * *

_Two hours later_

Sweat and blood poured down Hideki's face as he parried another of Naruto's blows. Naruto lashed out with a kick, and Hideki timed it and pushed off to jump backwards. Just as soon as he landed and resettled into a fighting stance, he was blocking another round of blows.

Naruto, seeing this attack hadn't worked, leapt backwards and made the familiar cross sign. Instantly, ten more Naruto's sprang into action and leapt at Hideki while the original stayed behind and unsheathed his sword for the first time in this battle. Like the ten other barrages of Narutos that he had faced that day, his Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile dispatched them handily before they could cause any damage.

As he extinguished the fire, Naruto leapt towards him with his sword held overhead. Hideki leapt back to avoid the slash before unleashing a barrage of shuriken which forced Naruto to dodge and go on the defensive as he made his way towards Hideki, who continued to throw shuriken.

Suddenly, Hideki felt hands pulling him through the ground and he aimed his Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique to dispel the Naruto clone using the Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique while using the force of the blast and the shielding his fire affinity granted him to jump upwards. As he began to fall, he looked back to see what Naruto was doing.

He looked up too late as Naruto landed a kick right in his stomach. Before he could recover, Naruto was on top of him, having knocked his nearly-drawn sword out of his hands. A second later, and Naruto slapped a pre-drawn paralysis seal on his forehead and stood over him with the tip of his blade cutting into Hideki's neck.

"Sorry Hideki, you lose," Naruto said emotionlessly. He hesitated a second before realizing that he could not afford to give Hideki another out; he had gone way to easy on his during their fight, hoping that at any moment Danzo-sama would call the whole thing off as a joke. Apparently, his wish was not going to be granted. A single tear emerged from his eye as he slashed his sword downward to end Hideki's life.

Instantly, his eyes felt different. He felt like his eyes were on fire, burning into his skull. He sank to his knees as he pressed his hands to his eyes trying to contain the burning sensation. Terai knelt down next to him, and forced him to turn over and lie on his back. The Root medic finally pried his burning eyes open. "Danzo-sama… His eyes!" The medic whispered.

Danzo knelt down and saw what his medic was talking about; Naruto's eyes had changed. Now in Naruto's eyes remained the rings and the purple backdrop, but there was a new addition of a black equilateral triangle with anther triangle inside the larger one pointing in the opposite direction, and in the middle of the eye, the black dot that signified the nexus where evolved Sharingan and Rinnegan met.

"What- what is this?" Danzo whispered.

"Mangekyō- the Mangekyō Sharingan," Terai whispered.

"Is this possible?" Danzo asked. "I know that the scrolls pilfered from the Uchiha clan said it was possible with the death of the person closest to you but-" He stopped and looked at Hideki's body. He began wondering if the emotion-suppression seals on Naruto were doing their job.

"What should we do, Danzo-sama?" Terai asked.

"Run some tests on him," Danzo commanded as two Root agents appeared to drag Hideki's body away. "Let's see what he can do with this new Sharingan."

* * *

_Three Months Later_

"Chidori!" Naruto shouted as his hand began crackling with electricity and he used his lightning fist to destroy another of Danzo's training dummies. Once his attack had dissipated, Naruto sank to his feet, ready to end his training and head to bed. A few months ago, Danzo's agents had "recovered" scrolls from Hatake Kakashi, the creator of this particular jutsu, and seeing as Naruto had the Sharingan and therefore wasn't susceptible to the tunnel vision effects of the attack, he was tasked with learning and mastering this assassination jutsu. Of course, he could only perform the jutsu a few dozen times before he felt completely drained, even after months of work. Still, Danzo-sama seemed pleased, so Naruto had no reason to be unhappy with his progress.

"Naruto, Danzo-sama wishes to speak with you," declared one of his comrades, a fellow Root agent called Sai.

"Thank you Sai," Naruto responded as he toweled off. Setting the towel down, Naruto began walking through the base to find Danzo.

"What can I do for you, Danzo-sama?" Naruto asked a few minutes later as he stood before his comamnder.

Danzo gazed at him and pulled a familiar file from his desk. This was one of Danzo's nervous habits, before assigning a mission, he would check with the Root agent in question to make sure all his data was accurate. What Naruto didn't know was that this was Danzo's way of making sure no spies had slipped into his midst by imitating one of his agents, especially one as well known in important circles of Konoha, as Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto?" Naruto nodded. "Age 10?" Another nod. "Taijutsu skills: exceptional? Genjutsu skills: above average? Ninjutsu skills: exceptional? Fūinjutsu skills: above average? Strength, speed, stamina, reflexes, danger-scenario planning: exceptional? Stealth: exceptional? Kenjutsu: above average? Weapons ability: above average? Strategic and tactical thinking: exceptional? Intelligence and knowledge: exceptional? Infiltration abilities: exceptional? Chakra control: exceptional? Chakra capacity: unmatched?" Naruto nodded in the affirmative to every one of Danzo's queries.

"How many tails of Kyuubi's chakra can you channel?" he asked, as was their prearranged security question.

"Three while retaining control over my body, but four, or possibly five if I am willing to slip into a mindless rage," Naruto answered.

"You have completed 2 C, 24 B, 28 A, and 5 S ranked missions, correct?" Danzo asked. Naruto nodded. "If it were possible, I would class the mission I am about to give you as double S ranked." Naruto's eyes rose, knowing that this was a critical assignment.

"We have received many reports concerning Otogakure, the Sound's new hidden village. I have already sent an agent to infiltrate, and I have just received word of his capture, interrogation, and execution. However, some of the intelligence he provided is… disturbing. I need you to infiltrate the village and discover as much as you can."

"Hai, Danzo-sama. When do I leave, and will I be receiving a team for this assignment?" Naruto asked.

"You leave tomorrow, and you shall operate alone," Danzo replied. "Do you have any more questions?" Naruto shook his head. "Then you are dismissed."

* * *

_Three Months Later_

"Danzo-sama, though we have received copies of Naruto's findings from his investigation of Otogakure, he has not made contact since his last report," declared Fuu. "What are your orders?"

Danzo sat up worriedly. "When did we receive his last report?"

"We received this report a few days ago. While that wasn't cause for concern, he indicated in his letter that he might soon be ousted as a spy by the Otokage's forces. As Root protocol dictates, I sent him back a withdrawal order, after reading his concerns. The problem is that I have no indication he received his orders, and I have not received any other response. Considering the dangerous nature of his assignment, perhaps we should send another agent to try and contact him or discover his whereabouts," Torune proposed.

"What kind of information did he provide?" Danzo asked, hoping that his accumulated information could reflect his level of infiltration, and by extension, the amount of danger he was in.

"He has identified the mysterious Otokage as Orochimaru," Torune declared. Upon hearing this, Danzo promptly gave the order for all other Root agents in attendance to leave.

"Orochimaru? The Orochimaru?" Danzo asked in a shocked tone of voice. If this assignment now involved an S class criminal and his village, then one of his best assets was in danger. The information did make sense though, as Root was already quite familiar with the Otokage's brutality.

"Yes Danzo-sama, that Orochimaru. Our intelligence indicates his hidden village is little more than a factory for genetically modified ninja. Notable names include the Sound Four," Fuu passed Danzo the pictures from the file, "The last of the Kayuga clan, and his most prominent spy in our midst, academy instructor Hisayo Mizuki." Danzo scanned the picture warily.

"Dispatch Tera to dispose of him," he commanded. "Anything else?" Danzo asked, knowing he'd be combing the file for information later.

"Just one thing, though it is very important: Orochimaru is preparing to attack Konoha," Fuu declared. Danzo's eye widened in disbelief.

* * *

_A Few Days Later_

"Well Kit, this is another fine mess you've gotten us into," Kyuubi rumbled from within its cage.

Naruto picked himself up from off the floor. "Please shut up?" he asked as he proceeded to dust himself off. "How was I to know that my cover would be blown so soon? At least we got away?"

"If by away you mean chased a hundred miles, while killing several pursuing Oto Shinobi, and evading traps, kunai and shuriken, and then falling off a cliff once you were cornered, rather than be taken prisoner and tortured, then yes, we got away," Kyuubi answered. The giant fox yawned. "Sometimes, I don't even know why I even bother. It's not like I'll ever be free of these infernal seals."

"Seals, what, still made you're trapped here?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Haven't ever wondered why you couldn't feel emotion, why you were so loyal to Danzo and the root, why you couldn't talk about them?" Kyuubi asked. "I'll let you in on a secret: you act this way because they carved a seal matrix on your back that forces you to."

"I think you're lying," Naruto replied blandly.

Kyuubi grinned, though Naruto could not see this. 'Now's my chance.' "I can prove that I'm telling the truth," Kyuubi replied. "All you have to do is tell me you do not want these seals, and I will get rid of them," Kyuubi offered.

Naruto crossed his arms. "What's the catch? I mean, I can't free you, I already am allowed to use some of your power- what's the catch?"

Kyuubi lifted its head up. "One day, you will try to gain full control over my power. To do that, you shall release from my prison and attempt to beat me into submission. All I ask is that you continue to seek a way to harness my power. For I am the Kyuubi no Yoko, and as long as I have that promise that I shall one day have a chance to fight for my freedom, then I am quite willing to work with you."

Naruto stared the fox in the eye. "I agree to your terms. Now please remove these seals from my body."

Kyuubi laughed. "Thankfully, I can negate the seal's influence while you're here, or else you would never have been willing to listen. Now watch carefully," Kyuubi rumbled while expelling a red aura. Naruto fell to the floor of his mindscape while Kyuubi expelled more of its red aura, which cranked up the intensity of the pain Naruto was feeling. As he felt like his skin was on fire and his nerves were burning, Naruto began crying for it to end, for Kyuubi to finish.

Finally, Kyuubi finished, and Naruto lay on the floor, breathing heavily. "I hope you enjoyed that Kit, because I know I did. Now you're free from those blasted seals." 'and free from the Root' Kyuubi finished in its head. Naruto continued to lay on the floor with his eyes closed, until a sharp poke to his head forced him to wince. The poke came once more, and Naruto blindly clapped a hand to his head.

Opening his eyes, Naruto was just about to shout at the Kyuubi when he noticed he was not in his mindscape anymore. Seeing the person who'd woken him, Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he asked, "What happened? Where am I?"


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I was originally going to leave this as a one-shot and see if anyone else wanted to pick this up. But, considering it is a rather unique quantity, I decided I wanted dibs. Finally, I decided on how a full-length story for this fic would progress. I hope I haven't disappointed any interested parties. So here, without further ado, is an expansion for this fic. I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy.

Chapter One: Chains Cut Loose

_Seeing the person who'd woken him, Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he asked, "What happened? Where am I?"_

Or perhaps what he meant to ask was, "Why do you have a kunai pressed against my neck?" It seemed a fairly decent question to ask given the circumstances. 'Boy, what a way to go.'

The girl who held the kunai to his neck squinted at him. Admittedly, even though it was the middle of the day, the foliage of their location mostly blocked out the sun. It served to make their location seem rather creepy. "I'm not going back!" She whispered harshly, slightly pressing the kunai further into his neck. Considering the norm for his career as a ninja this was just par for the course, not exceptionally painful.

On the one hand, Naruto was pretty sure that if push came to shove, he could escape. Though from how she was leaning on him, it would certain be difficult. And he was still slightly wounded from his last excursion. On the other hand, here was a confused, distraught, and potentially dangerous person. If he didn't deal with the problem, someone else might have to. And the consequences of that could be very bad for him. Such as the wrong people learning more about him and his location at the wrong time. Besides unstable people also generally made unstable opponents, and he really didn't need a fight with one of those right now. So it made a lot more sense to try talking her down than to try escaping. "I'm not here to take you back. I don't even know where 'here' or 'back' are," He tried to explain.

"Liar!" She snarled, slamming her other hand into his gut. Man did she hit hard. She hit harder than most ninja he'd trained with or fought against at this point in his life. How exactly was that possible? "Tell them that I'm not going back. I'd rather die than stay there!" Back? What was…?

Oh… maybe it was the headband. It was an infiltration meeting after all, and it had required him blending in and acting the part to gather intelligence. Well, there was only one thing for it. "I'm not actually with Oto, Miss. I was just following orders to gather intelligence," He confessed softly. He winced internally; he'd never been able to say anything close to that before. Could the demon fox have been right on the money?

"Oto?" The kunai was pulled back, if only by an inch. Confusion? Why the confusion? "What is Oto? What does that have to do with anything?" She whispered frantically. In the middle of her whispered exclamation she began glancing around, as if suspecting an ambush.

"Oto. You know, the village you just escaped from," Naruto suggested sarcastically. Perhaps his attitude was going to get him killed one of these days. He might have kept a cooler attitude if the circumstances weren't quite so dire. Seriously though, what the fuck was going on here? Was he missing something?

"You- you're not with Taki?" She asked in a rush. Her hand holding the kunai was shaking slightly. Okay. Confirmed. He was missing something.

"Taki? Takigakure?" She nodded slightly, a trace of fear on her face. "What does that have to do with anything?" Naruto asked, trying to keep calm. Inside, he felt like he was banging his head on a rock with how little in the way of progress he was making. "I'm actually coming from Oto."

"I-… You're really not with Taki?" She asked uncertainly. She lowered the kunai a little more. Well, whatever he was doing, it seemed to be working.

"No. I'm really not with Taki," Naruto assured her. "Look at the headband. It's a headband used to display loyalty to the Sound Village. I'm not with Taki, and I'm not planning to bring you back. Please, believe me," Naruto pleaded quietly. He sounded weak and desperate because that was the kind of thing would get him freed. It had actually worked for him in the past. And not for his opponents at the time, as they had found out shortly thereafter.

"Oh." She stared at him, and then finally withdrew the kunai, and rolled off of him. She stared at him suspiciously. But when he made no move to attack her, she reluctantly deposited the kunai back in her pouch and began breathing heavily. "Um… sorry," She finally said a while after the awkward silence ensued. "I just… well, if you're not from Taki; who are you?"

"I'm no one that important," Naruto responded idly, still lost in his thoughts. Once he had the opportunity to sit and think a little, he began examining everything that had happened in the last few days. Truly, there was much to examine.

He felt… He could feel… it was so very different from the way it had been. He felt confusion at his situation. He felt an extreme amount of anger at the girl who had threatened him. He felt… and he hadn't felt before. Or, to say it better, he hadn't felt properly before. He had always chosen to shunt his emotions to the side in favor of analyzing and logically approaching the situations presented to him. Okay, as he was just learning, it apparently wasn't his choice to do so. Apparently…

Yeah, he had rubbed a hand along his back. Slowly, back and forth, over and over again. And he had felt… something. A seal such as that had made a physical mark on its place of implantation. Anyone who studied fūinjutsu would have known that. And he could feel it. Even though it was barely there at this point, because of it being deactivated. But it was there. And that counted for a lot right now. It meant that the Kyuubi had been telling the truth. What was the world coming to that he could trust the demon fox over his home village? Was it an indicator as to the state of his life that the words of the malicious demon fox were the only pillar of truth he had to cling to?

Had it always been this way? He thought Danzo had raised him from infancy, nurtured him, turned him into the ultimate fighting machine to protect the village they both loved. Strength, power, honor, perserverence, protection. His bloody line of work. The Root. Was it a lie? Was it all a lie? Had Danzo really… "_I will do whatever it takes to protect Konoha_." Yes, that sounded like him. And what he might say on a typical day; what he actually had said on many a day. Whatever it took. Ends justified the means. For the greater good of the village. It was an attribute he had once admired in the man. Now…

Now it seemed apparent that he had been one of the many sacrifices towards that end. All in the name of the village. The village that he had no choice but to love. Loyalty, fealty, secrecy, silence, sweat, and blood; all of which he had been forced to give without his consent. For the greater good of Konoha. But not his greater good. Because in such a situation, he was never really part of the village. He never really belonged. He was just an outsider who should pay the price time and time again to defend a village forced upon him. His present situation was quite a clear indicator of just that.

Oh, there was nothing wrong with giving his all, possibly even his life, for a cause. Even as enraged as he was, there were certain things, certain ideals, more important than one life. That was a basic that he knew well; something he could not and would not question. A sturdy foundation he couldn't afford to be without. It was just a truth, some things were more important than his life; sometimes making the greatest of all sacrifices was the proper choice. But the choice should have been his. Danzo had taken the choice out of his hands.

Danzo. He… the man… it-… well it was rather clear after a few moments of thought. He now knew that he had been just a tool, just a pawn for the man. For a means to an end. Just like Hideki had been. He felt a twinge of regret; Hideki had been another apparent sacrifice for the greater good of the village. He'd killed his best friend. And his death seemed so pointless, so useless. Why? Why had he done such a thing? Why had Danzo done such a thing? And was this even the proper forum to open such a can of worms? His situation was about as bad as it ever had been. All his carefully manufactured plans had gone to hell with one stupid slip-up. What was there to do now…?

_"And what do we do if the plan goes to hell?" Naruto asked skeptically when Hideki suggested that he create a diversion and Naruto use it to get a look at the information on lightning jutsus they had been assigned to retrieve._

_ "Oh, the plan will definitely go to hell," Hideki explained neutrally. "Thing is, in our line of work, its generally not how well you plan, but how well you improvise that separates those with long and illustrious careers and those dead on their first few missions. You may have several missions under your belt, but I was trained by Danzo-sama for this kind of thing."_

Improvisation. That he could do. Danzo was dead to him. Konoha was dead to him. They had used him as a pawn in furthering their own ambitions. Danzo had used him. He had been trained from birth, molded and forged into becoming the best pawn he could. Hours of sweat, tool, blood, pain; all for a village that had used him. They didn't care about him; they cared about their powerful weapon. Or else they wouldn't have enslaved him against his will and forced him to become a killer to safeguard their own interests. Well, it was clear now: He wasn't going back.

Konoha could rot for all he cared. He was done with them. He wasn't going to be their pawn once again. He wasn't going to be Danzo's pawn once again. He was done with the village and their schemes. Hopefully, the fallout from this assignment would give him cover to move. After all, Orochimaru's reputation greatly surpassed his own. His name was worthy of much more attention. But… what could he do? What did he have? Where could he go? What…

_"The reality of the situation is the most important thing. At any given moment, you have certain tools, certain techniques, and certain tactics at your disposal. The only thing required is to be clear in your use and intention," Danzo lectured before Tera dragged him away for another lesson. Why were proper tactics and strategies so hard to learn, again?_

He wasn't going back to Konoha. That much was clear. He was done with them. Period. But now that he was… well, he was free. Free was the right word for it, he guessed. He was a strong, capable ninja, who had just severed ties with his village. But that sounded like… well, it was what it was. He was… a missing ninja. A Missing-Nin. And that was that. Once the village discovered he was alive, they were going to put out a huge bounty on his head. And they would make that discovery eventually. So where did that leave him?

He had his Rinnegan. For whatever that was worth… considering all he had read about the Rinnegan and its special gifts, why did it seem to carry such a curse with it? He had his Mangekyō Sharingan. Again, supposedly one of the highest gifts one could obtain, and yet it seemed to be little more than another curse laid upon him. He had a career of teachings; Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, Kenjutsu- the list could go on. He had his sword, as dull as the blade might be at this point, his kunai and shuriken, though they were few in number after his recent escape, and his fūinjutsu material. A small amount, but still, enough. Money? Did he have any Ryo? No, he had never been paid for his missions. He had been a mindless, brainwashed pawn; what use would money have been to one of those? He had certainly never had a need for it before. So he was broke. And he had the shirt on his back and a demonic Nine-Tailed Fox sealed in his stomach. No change of clothes even; it had been lost in his desperate escape. And…That was it, sadly.

And now he had a horde of enemies who would soon be scouring the continent for him. Danzo's Root would not rest quietly once they discovered he was alive and deserting their ranks. Konoha would not back down in their attempts to get their Jinchuuriki back under lock and key. And the bounty they would inevitably out on his head would add more to the already growing list of enemies. Plus, there was Orochimaru. The Snake Sannin had discovered him. He now knew that there was another who knew of his plans against his former village. He was not one to let sleeping dogs lie. Perhaps Suna would get dragged into the fray against him due to their alliance with the Leaf Village. And he was sure as time went on, more and more people would be added to the list. So now that he had established that he was a Missing-Nin, that he had only a limited arsenal of resources to draw upon, and that he had too many enemies to count, where did that really leave him? What was he going to do with his newfound freedom to keep it just like that?

Well, what did he want? The first thing that came to his mind was, 'To be left alone.' That was pretty much the textbook definition of a pipe dream at this point. But he had already wasted too much of his life serving the whims of others, being a pawn for their aspirations. Well, perhaps it wasn't as much of a pipe dream as he had first thought. After all, Konoha did not know what had happened to him yet, Oto was not aware of his survival yet, and if it stayed that way… Well, could it stay that way? Maybe. Yes, yes it could. For the immediate future, anyway. He could lie low. He had trained long and hard in how to infiltrate after all, and he had survived a long time as a Konoha spy in Oto for months. So yes, he could lie low. He needed to find a way to cover himself; a new name, a new identity, a new life. But how could he undertake such an endeavor… Well, maybe… Yes, perhaps the girl, who he'd only just remembered, could help in that area. Maybe. What could it hurt at this point? Well, it was time to see if that was a possible avenue of interest.

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Naruto asked finally, turning his attention back on the girl. Now that he was done thinking things through, he had a chance to take in her appearance. She was young, probably around his age. Her hair was short and spiky, colored in a very light green, with an orange clip in it. Her eyes were also a very noticeable orange, and her skin seemed to be slightly tinted that color as well. She wore a white top without sleeves, and a white skirt; both of which seemed to be quite filthy. At least she didn't look hostile at the moment. Though she did look to be quite scared and apprehensive. Stressed. Like a hunted animal, knowing that the predators were drawing ever closer. Didn't soften her attitude, though.

"I'm no one that important," She replied harshly. Hmm, she was throwing his own words back at him. This did not bode well. On the other hand, he did kind of deserve this. But still, there was a time and a place for this sort of thing. And this clearly was not it.

"Look. I'm tired, I'm stressed, I'm very close to being hunted across the Elemental Nations like a fox fleeing from the hounds. Let's forget about all of that and be civil. Who are you?" Naruto asked again with his arms crossed. Well, he was trying, at the very least.

"Why should I tell you anything? Why should I care? Maybe you should start walking in that direction, and I'll start walking in this direction, and we'll pretend we never saw each other," She snarled angrily. Angry. And irrational. Bad combination.

"Okay, it's seems pretty clear that you're in the same boat I am. You're being hunted. I believe you said Taki was doing the hunted. I have enemies too. Enemies who are willing to chase me just like they are you. Actually, maybe with a bit more vigor and tenacity. Still, all I'm saying is… maybe we can help each other out," Naruto proposed seriously. It was worth a shot. The girl might have something to offer, from combat skills to sheer resourcefulness.

She stared at him for a long moment. "If you think that I'm willing to go along with anything you just suggested than you-" But exactly what Naruto could do was interrupting at that moment by a sudden rustling. From the brush appeared two Taki ninja as their headbands proclaimed. Two jounin, armed to the teeth, to be more precise.

"Well, look what we have. If it isn't little Fū?" He glanced to the side towards his female companion, "It looks like you were right on the money," The apparent leader commented. His eyes shifted to Naruto. "And who do we have here?"

"I'm a Konoha Shinobi. Ninja Registration I.D. 011976. Rank: Anbu," Naruto replied swiftly. "I stumbled upon this girl while evading pursuers from my assigned mission." The girl, Fū, shot him a betrayed look.

"Leaf-nin, hmm." He stared at him for a moment, as if expecting him to do something that would betray himself and his intentions. "All right, you can go," The Jounin declared while thumbing to his left. "You should know that you were in the company of one of the most dangerous and unstable Taki fugitives."

"Does that mean there is a reward for my assistance?" Naruto asked curiously.

"No! It means you're lucky to be alive! Stupid Leaf-nin," He grumbled. "Get lost, kid."

"Okay. Later," He shrugged as he walked to the edge of the clearing and disappeared into the brush. The leader watched his back all the way to make sure that he really left. Once he was gone and the leader was satisfied, he turned back to their prey.

"Now then Fū, you know you can't beat us," He held up a pre-designed seal. "Come along quietly and maybe Leader-sama will let you live." 'Not likely, though.'

Fū stared at him. "I'd rather die than go back!" She snarled as she grasped a kunai. However, she never got a chance to use it as the other jounin quickly activated her own seal, and she fell to her knees, obviously in pain. The leader quickly walked over to her and began tying her up for transport back to the village. The other one slapped her already activated seal on her forehead to keep her restrained, though it was hard to do so while she squirmed like she had a seizure. For good measure, she then gagged her just to make sure she didn't draw undue attention to their group.

Once they were finished, the leader signaled his comrade and she began carrying the bound prisoner back to the village. They had a long journey ahead of them, and it was a grueling and rather uninteresting walk back. Along the way, they noticed, as had others before them, that the foliage seemed to never change or differ, and now matter how much they walked, it seemed like they weren't getting any closer to the village. It was how Taki had survived as a free village for decades; it lay in such an inhospitable place that no one could wage war against them because of the resulting attrition their forces would face. Still, this trek was wearing on the two jounin.

"Are we there yet?" The female jounin whined. Fū, squirming and furious as she was, was a rather heavy package to carry over such a distance. Why did Taki have to be so damn far away?

The leader turned his head slightly. "Nearly. A few more miles and-" But his partner did not hear the rest of his statement. At that moment, he stepped forward and tripped a wire that resulted in a barrage of Shuriken and Kunai raining down upon him from his sides. He managed to Kawarimi a few feet away with modest injuries from the attack. "What the-!" He didn't finish that exclamation either as that was the moment when a rather dull and rusty blade impaled him in the chest. The leader, in the throes of death, turned slightly to see the ninja from earlier, before he perished.

The surviving jounin quickly dropped Fū to the ground as she withdrew a kunai. The attacking ninja withdrew his now bloody sword from the now former leader's body, and held it in front of himself, threateningly. Slowly withdrawing her kunai, the jounin charged at him. Her opponent, leapt into the green, and she stopped, glancing around, trying to locate him. Another barrage of shuriken was thrown her way, and she quickly dodged to the side.

"Who are-?"

"Seal!" Her opponent shouted. Wait she knew that voice! It was the ninja they had met earlier. Well, she had a duty… wait! Wait! She couldn't move! "Sorry," Came a whisper from behind her before his dull blade pierced her heart and ended yet another life.

Naruto withdrew and sheathed his blade as he deactivated his seal. Fū's eyes widened upon seeing who her savior was. Naruto walked over and ripped the seal off of her forehead. She stopped squirming immediately. Naruto slowly pulled out a kunai and used it to cut off her gag. With a final swipe of it, he undid her bindings.

"Feel better now?" He asked as he put his kunai back and moved to scavenge from his dead opponent's body. "Still think I'm just in it to screw you over?" Hopefully, they had some more kunai and shuriken on them, because this ambush about emptied his stockpile. But if he recovered them all, and took some surplus from the two Taki corpses, that should leave him well off for a time. For a time.

Fū rubbed her wrists and gently got to her feet. There was a part of her saying that she should attack him while she had the chance. He was distracted, and she had just seen how he fought, so maybe she could defeat him. However… however, he had just saved her. He had- no one had ever done something like that for her! It hardly seemed possible. So maybe… his targets were her captors? No, didn't make sense. He seemed like a rather efficient ninja. No, what was she saying! He said he was an Anbu.

"Fū was it? Could you be a dear and pick that ninja clean?" He called out, carefully taking the last interesting article from the female jounin's body, and moving towards reclaiming his own stockpile of weapons.

She hesitated for a second before moving towards Isamu, the jounin Naruto had first dispatched. As she stared down at his lifeless body, she realized she felt no regret. She'd always hated him, and he had returned the feelings. He could never see past who she was, and always saw the burden she carried. Without meaning to, a memory came to her.

_"-Just because you're important to the village doesn't mean you're important to me," The jounin had explained gruffly before leaving her hut, as his shift was over._

_ Glumly, she had stood on the bench by the window to look out on the village. A passing villager locked eyes with her and he turned away coldly. It was like that with the next two villagers she tried this with. Why? Why did they all hate her?_

_ "__**Because of me**__," Came a whisper in her mind that she had long since associated with the demon trapped within her. "__**You already knew that. You just haven't accepted it. They will always hate you because of me. They will never see past me to the scared little girl holding her**__."_

_ Fū clenched her fists. "Shut up! I don't have to listen to you! They'll see me for who I am someday!"_

_ "__**Keep telling yourself that**__!" Nanabi faded away._

_ "I will," Fū whispered resolutely._

_ "You're communicating with the demon!" Whispered a shocked voice from behind her. She wheeled around and saw Isamu. Oh, no. Not him. Anyone but him. Please- "You're coming with me to leader-sama! He can deal with this!"_

Fū clenched her heart and moved to take all the supplies he'd had. He deserved this. She glanced behind her. So did Tomiko. She felt no… okay, little regret over what had happened. They both hated her, and showed it at every opportunity. And that was that.

"Done," She called out. She hadn't realized how hoarse her voice had gotten. Wiping sweat off her forehead, she stood back up. When had she started shaking again?

"Glad to hear it," Naruto said from right behind her. She wheeled around; she hadn't sensed him. He dropped the stuff he'd collected, minus kunai and shuriken, in front of her. Those were safely tucked away. "Here's what I got."

She gently set what she'd taken from Isamu in front of her. "What will we need?" Left unsaid were her reservations about actually working with him.

Naruto squatted down. "Hmm, well, wallets are always useful." He grabbed the two wallets. "Isamu, Tomiko, hmm. Some Ryo, though. Here, you can hold our money." He withdrew their money and handed it to her. Grudgingly, she took the money and pocketed it. "Sealing materials? Excellent." Naruto took it and tucked it away.

Fū reacted like she'd been slapped. "Why do you need that?" She asked harshly.

Naruto thumbed over his shoulder to the female jounin he'd downed. "I used fūinjutsu to defeat her. And I kind of have a knack for it. Does that bother you?" He asked gently. "I saw what they did to you, and I can tell you that I can't and won't do that."

"No," She muttered, looking away, her heart thudding in her chest. Oh great, why was she working with him again? Probably because she didn't have any other choice. '**You can still kill him**.' 'No!'

Naruto grabbed the changes of clothes both ninja's had carried with them. "Not my size, but these could prove useful. Anything else you want?"

She idly glanced at the pile of things they had gathered. "No," She answered emotionlessly. She felt like such a vulture.

Naruto finished tucking away the stuff he'd taken from the pile. "Right. We should be going before curious people come looking for them. Follow me." Almost without realizing what she was doing, Fū ran to keep pace with him.

* * *

"So he's gone?" The Hokage asked harshly as he took another puff from his pipe.

Danzo bowed his head. "Yes. As I said, we have received no word from him. We must assume the worst at this point."

The Hokage stared at him for a long moment, many different emotions passing over both men's faces. "I hope this all was worth it, Danzo-san."

Danzo stared down. He actually looked remorseful. "Uzumaki uncovered some disturbing intelligence from his mission to Oto." He paused for a second. "It appears that the new hidden village is being run by Orochimaru."

"Orochimaru!" The Hokage exclaimed hoarsely. "He is the mysterious Otokage?" 'What is my former student planning?'

"Yes. The Snake Sannin appears to have turned the new hidden village into his new laboratory. He has accumulated an array of ninja," Danzo passed over his folder, "That should be of significant concern."

The Hokage began leafing through the intelligence Danzo had gathered. "And he aims to launch an attack against out village? And some of these names… the Sound Four. His personal boduguards. Exceedingly well trained. A Kayuga- I had thought the clan had perished in full. And Mizuki?" He turned his cold eyes on Danzo. "Have your men apprehend of him at once."

"Again, I apologize for this, Hokage-sama," Danzo declared. "I had thought the decisions I had made in regards to him were the right ones. It seems that I was incorrect."

The Hokage stared at him. "Such is the life of a ninja. As much as I wish I could have protected him, would he have been any better off had you not intervened? Sadly, these are questions we may never know the answer to. All we know now is that Orochimaru… he plans to attack the village. And one of my most promising ninja… is gone." He sighed. "You know what must be done?"

Danzo nodded. "Yes. I shall have Mizuki brought in at once. Are there any other figures I should focus on?"

"No. Though he says his data is incomplete, we shall increase surveillance in the village. It is possible that some of his forces may have slipped through," The Hokage acknowledged. "We never suspected that Orochimaru had made such a move, and in light of that mistake, we must realize there are other errors in judgment we could have committed."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Danzo acquiesced.

"It appears that dark times are on the horizon for our village. As much as I wish that Uzumaki was still with us, I do realize that the sacrifice he made may in fact keep the Will of Fire burning and help us to weather this storm," The Hokage admitted. "We must begin to make preparations against Orochimaru. It appears that he soon will be on our doorstep."

"It does," Danzo admitted. "My Root stands ready to aid the village in these dark times. Naruto's sacrifice will not have been made in vain."

"Then you are dismissed," The Hokage told him stoically.

"Good day, Hokage-sama," Danzo told him as he left the room.

* * *

"Has the intruder been apprehended?" Orochimaru asked sternly.

"No, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto replied calmly; he was the one chosen to give the unfortunate status report. "It appears… he chose to take his own life rather than be captured."

"You have his body?"

"No. He chose to jump off a five-hundred foot cliff. Though we have had a few teams survey the area, we can find no traces of him. Except blood. And some bones. We believe that in the time we were delayed from pursuing him, his body was either retrieved, or it fell into the river below and was washed away. But there is no evidence of his survival."

"Thoroughly scan the area once more. Let us not take chances with this. Is there any evidence that his employers know of our plan?" He could ill afford the Leaf catching on to his machinations.

"No. Mizuki has noted no change in Konoha's diligence, at last report. It seems that all he knew of our plans died with him." Hopefully.

"And we don't even have a name for this spy?" Orochimaru mused. "He showed a lot of skill in hiding his true loyalties for so long. A shame; useful people are hard to come by."

"Actually. I think I might have a name. Naruto Uzumaki. His is a name I've uncovered during my time in the village. And the spy had a skill set similar to his. And a similar appearance, though I only laid eyes upon him once." Kabuto's glasses gleamed. "Which means that we have dealt the Leaf a significant blow on this day."

"How do you figure?" The Snake Sannin asked curtly.

"He was the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki," Kabuto acknowledged.

Orochimaru paused what he was doing. "The one with the Rinnegan? The legendary Mangekyō Sharingan? The one who held the Kyuubi? You fool; why didn't you tell me earlier?" Orochimaru snarled. "If I had known, I would have become involved personally in capturing him." Such a specimen… he would have been the perfect vessel.

"Orochimaru-sama. I was in Konoha. Gathering Intelligence. Only through reading these reports have I gleamed any indication of who this person might have been. Considering the doujutsu he possesses, why didn't you recognize him?" He asked his question mildly or else his master would have ended his life then and there.

Orochimaru pondered that question. As tempted as he was to mount Kabuto's head on his wall for his tongue, the spy did raise a valid question. "I only encountered him once. And his eyes were blue," He finally admitted. Ocean blue- not Sharingan black. That was worth pondering. "Has Konoha uncovered a way to conceal possessors of doujutsu?"

"Not to my knowledge. Except by the crudest of methods, such as Hatake Kakashi's mask, or a basic Henge," Kabuto admitted. Though it was worth investigating.

"Hmm. So you are uncertain? Could it have been another?"

"Yes. It could have. He seemed like the most likely candidate, but there are others, a solid few, who could have also been sent. It is possible that the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki is still a piece in play."

"This is critical information. I need it at my disposal almost immediately. If he has perished, then my plans are at risk," Orochimaru explained curtly. "Return to the village and find what you can."

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto acknowledged as he left the room. Orochimaru sighed. The Kyuubi container, the one who had possessed such legendary doujutsus might have been slain. He hoped that was not the case. The boy was essential to his plans. He was to be his new body, his path to ascension. Well, there was only one thing left to do for now. Sit and wait. And if he was gone… yes, the Leaf would surely pay. That much could be counted upon.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Just a slight warning; this chapter is much shorter than my prior chapter. Just thought you all should know that. Because I did have trouble making it work the way I wanted it to. But now, it is something I'm happy with. I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy.

Chapter Two: "Strangers In The Night"

-Title of a song by Frank Sinatra

"So he is… gone?" Torune clarified, not exactly sure how to feel about the loss of one of his leader's greatest assets. On the one hand, Uzumaki was a great asset, one Danzo-sama had invested so much time and effort into in the last decade. On the other hand, he never felt like he… well, they weren't close. Not that his colleague was close with most anyone- a price to be paid for being the village's ultimate weapon. But what he felt most of all was fear; raw, cold fear. Uzumaki had been the best. The best of the best. One of Danzo-sama's best soldiers. On a level barely comprehendible. Something to aspire to be. Without him… well, what hope was there for the Root? For anyone of them, who were not so gifted, so well trained?

Danzo idly spared him a glance. "So it appears. The agent I sent to investigate slipped into the Oto ranks and quickly learned that rumors of his demise appear to be accurate, unfortunately," He breathed a heavy sigh. "And now we are left with the task of dealing with Orochimaru without our best asset." Which, at this moment, truly seemed to be a nigh impossible task. If Naruto himself could be vanquished, then what hope did they have?

"It's not true!" Danzo and Torune turned to find one of their Root soldiers had been listening in on their conversation. Sai. Odd. "Naruto can't be gone! Even one of the Sannin and a legion of bodyguards and lackeys wouldn't be enough!" He proclaimed earnestly. He looked like he really believed that too. Danzo and Torune both wished at that moment that they could believe it too. But they couldn't. This was not the time to indulge in wishful fantasies.

"It appears to be true," Danzo replied gruffly. "Considering the reports we've read on some in Orochimaru's employ… if his cover were blown at the wrong time, then even he wouldn't have been able to fight off a literal village, with most of its occupants having been trained or experimented on by the Snake Sannin." He paused mournfully. "Unfortunately, it is true, Sai. Your former partner is dead." Even saying the truth cost Danzo a price he would never have been willing to pay otherwise. But it was the truth unfortunately; the weapon of Konoha was gone at its darkest hour. It was a frightening reality to face.

Sai stared at him for a long moment, before he finally turned away. "Fine," He finally replied, emotionlessly. "I apologize for my outburst, Danzo-sama. It's just… if he's gone, then…" He trailed off emotionlessly, though Danzo knew exactly what he meant. It was the way the old soldier felt too. Once- this one time, the emotional outburst could be excused. This. One. Time.

"Yes," Danzo agreed. "I know exactly what you mean. But it appears that he is gone, so arrangements must be made. The Otokage will pay for this," Danzo promised. "Hokage-sama has given me carte blanche to exact justice upon the rouge Sannin." His hard eyes turned upon Torune. "Gather and assemble our forces, Torune." His trusted bodyguard left to obey his command. "Leave me, Sai. I have work to do," He said as he turned away to try and figure out how to pay back Orochimaru for his interference.

* * *

"It turns out it was him," Kabuto remarked neutrally. Orochimaru looked up at him in confusion. "Uzumaki. It was he who was sent to infiltrate our village and gather intelligence." Cold fury swept over Orochimaru. "And apparently, before he died, he did succeed in getting word back to Konoha." The fury of his master left almost as suddenly as it had arrived as he began to scheme.

Orochimaru paused and pondered Kabuto's words. "Summons?" He suggested evenly, eager to know how his intelligence forces could have been outfoxed. Besides, he needed something to occupy his mind; it took him a great deal of effort to prevent himself from going on a rampage and massacring his servants and retainers for this failure. Kabuto shook his head. "How then?" He still had more ideas, but it seemed more prudent to not waste time and have Kabuto tell him what he needed to know.

"To our knowledge, he has no summons at his disposal. However, it seems that before we discovered him, he managed to send off a report, which confirms the fact that he was in our village for a period of six months or longer, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto reported evenly. "As we speak, Konoha is gearing up for war." And now all talk of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki vanished as the more urgent matter of war with their hated enemy took precedent.

Orochimaru frowned. "Are they now? So they know of me and my little staging ground, do they? Well, if it is a fight they want, then I can certainly oblige them," He muttered darkly. "Kabuto, your time as a spy is over. You are needed here to protect against the Leaf's inevitable onslaught." He stared amusedly at his subordinate. "And I need you to gather our forces."

Kabuto's glasses flashed, though his face remained neutral, with a little bit of puzzlement creeping into his expression. "Recruiting, Orochiamru-sama? What do you require of me?" He asked curiously. Though, internally, he was much more affected by his removal as a spy than whatever task the Snake Sannin had for him.

"Our forces must be collected and assembled," Orochimaru instructed him. "Guren, Kimimaro, Juugo; they must be gathered here with haste. You know where they are. You must go and retrieve them while I assemble and organize the village's defense." 'And figure out how to strike at the Leaf's weak point.'

Kabuto nodded. "Hai, Orochimaru-sama. I shall return with them in all due haste," He announced as he left the room to obey his given orders. He had just delivered exceedingly bad news; he was going to take whatever opportunity to leave that he could get.

"Now then, how will the Leaf strike?" Orochimaru mused quietly to the now empty room. And he had laid out such a beautiful plan to ensure his old home's destruction. Ah well, no use left turning over settled stones. Even if he could not strike at Konoha's heart, he knew what to do now and was still very capable at finding a way of striking at them… and getting his revenge on his old sensei. And maybe, if his cards were played well, figuring out a way to secure himself a new body. Yes, there was one more candidate- and perhaps fate would be kind enough to grant him an opportunity.

* * *

Jiraiya stared at his former sensei with a dead look in his eye. "Would you repeat that, please?" He asked neutrally, trying desperately to keep his emotions under control. Sarutobi-sama couldn't possibly have just said-

"Naruto is dead," The Third repeated sadly. He watched the plethora of emotions on his former student's face; anger, concern, angst, shame, loss, fear, fury, regret. He visibly balled his fists and began trembling slightly in rage. A reaction that he'd indulged in privately over the last few days.

"How!" He demanded harshly, losing is temper. "How did it happen!" His sensei couldn't be serious, no way…

"He was sent to infiltrate Otogakure. It's because of his sacrifice that we learned that your former teammate and my former student is the leader, and the layout and makeup of the kinds of forces he has at his disposal," The Third explained. He paused delicately. "But… he was discovered, apparently."

"Why! Why did you send him! If you were concerned about the village, why didn't you send me!" Jiraiya raged.

"Jiraiya-"

"NO Sensei! Why! This was my responsibility! Why couldn't you have contacted me! I would have done it!" He shouted. He took a breath. "Why couldn't you have just let him come with me?" He asked quietly. "Why did you allow Danzo to sink his claws into him?" He could have, he should have…

"You were unwilling to look after him!" The Third defended harshly. "You told me that you could not juggle your responsibilities to the village and raise your Godson at the same time," He added.

"Because I thought you could handle it better than I could! You are the Hokage after all," He reminded him disgustedly. "But no, you gave him over to Danzo, let him be turned into an emotionless weapon, and this is the result."

"Jiraiya!"

"No!" He stared at him. "This isn't Danzo's fault. This is yours. You signed off on this mission. You let him go. You could have just contacted me and let me handle the matter, but no, you had to-"

"JIRAIYA!" The Third thundered, completely incensed at those accusations. "How dare you! This is-!"

"His blood is on your hands, sensei!" Jiraiya interrupted tersely. "Yours, Danzo's, Orochimaru's," He stared at the Third, the man he'd always looked up to. The man who could do no wrong. Until now. "I've had it with you," He declared finally. "Tsunade was right. To hell with this whole damn village!" And with that he turned and stormed out of the office. The Hokage could only watch as his last, loyal student stormed out of sight. It seemed that his failure as a sensei was finally complete.

* * *

"This is a good location," Naruto declared finally, leaping down from the tree he was standing on into the middle of a deserted clearing. With a leap, Fū stood next to him, surveying his choice. "We'll make camp here for the night." He turned to his companion. "Please set up a fire and make up the beds while I put some protections in place and find us dinner?"

Grudgingly, Fū did so, though she had very little practical experience with this kind of thing. It took her twenty minutes to finally get a fire lit and burning, and she was still making up beds for them on the cold, hard ground, when Naruto returned with a bloody dear carcass flung over his shoulder. He stared at what she was doing. "I meant unseal the bed rolls I have and lay them out," He told her, going over to the scrolls he had left and pulling out two blue bedrolls. Something that generally came in handy on infiltration missions in the wilderness. Fū stared at him, clearly annoyed. "Sorry, I thought you understood what I meant," Naruto defended idly as he handed her his spare bedroll. After he laid out his own, he got to work on supper.

His companion clearly was unhappy with her meal- venison- but hunger defeated unhappiness and she eventually bit into the deer Naruto had tracked and killed. While they ate in silence, Naruto's mind wandered back to the puzzle he had been trying to comprehend for the past few hours. A question that had stayed with him since the moment where he'd 'woken up.' The puzzling matter of his emotions.

He'd thought, at first, that the seals had prohibited him from feeling, forced him to serve Danzo with no choice in the matter. While the second part was spot on, he now realized he'd been wrong about what he thought the seals were doing to him. They weren't preventing him from feeling emotion, only preventing him from recognizing and acting on them.

It was fundamental to the nature of seals; their inherent use was in sealing things away. It seemed very obvious on retrospect, but the key was that their use was in 'sealing away' not 'getting rid of.' Naruto's emotions had been sealed away. But, as his cursed crimson eyes attested, they had definitely not been gone. If they were, he could never have felt anything towards Hideki, and in turn, would not have felt any hesitation over killing him at Danzo's behest, nor any regret for having to do it… regret that led to his eyes. It meant… well, it meant…

-That his emotions had always been there. He just couldn't consciously feel them or let them dictate his actions. Subconsciously, he still had those he could call friends, still cared for people, still felt guilt and regret for his actions. It was there. It had always been there. And not Danzo, nor anyone, could just carve a seal and get rid of them forever more. But they had been restrained for the past ten years. Until the Kyuubi had broken them free.

And now that they had apparently been freed, things were… so confusing. Every time he had a stray thought, an idle memory, his mind would fill in the details at what he'd really thought at those moments. The guilt he felt at ripping apart so many families for 'The Greater Good of The Leaf.' And now that it was all there; now that he could feel happiness, fear, regret, guilt, apprehension, he wished he couldn't. Life had been so much simpler when he just served the Root and carried out Danzo's orders without consciously thinking about it.

Though it felt… so unfamiliar, so alien, he was learning to adapt. He'd had to study up on emotions and psychology as part of his Root training, after all. Now, it was just taking those foreign technical concepts of emotion and applying them to himself and what he was feeling. And at the moment, he was very, very apprehensive.

He'd made the conscious decision to flee with no real thought, no real understanding. Yes, he wanted out. He was tired of that life; serving Konoha, bowing to their every beck and call. But he had no real idea about what his alternative options were. In short, he had no experience being a nuke-nin. And now, he glanced back at the strange girl, he had a companion with enemies of her own. This was not shaping up well.

He finished off his meal and set his dining utensils to the side. "So…" The girl wheeled around and stared at him. Had she forgotten he was here? "Fū, was it?" Why did that name sound so familiar? Was it possible she was someone Danzo had once asked him to study up on? Because there were many names, faces, and backgrounds he'd been forced to memorize over the years. "Who exactly are you?"

She stared at him. "Yes, my name is Fū. I'm… I was… I-," She paused, trying to find the right words. "I used to be a ninja of Taki," She admitted finally. "And then… well, I suppose I just…"

"-Left?" Naruto suggested. "Is that what you're trying to say? You left?" Which was quite obvious; but he knew that there was more to the story. Slowly, she nodded once. "Why did you leave?" He asked calmly.

She stared at him, her mouth moving, but no words coming out. "No reason," She muttered finally.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Lies now? First reluctance, then lies. This was… troubling. "You left your village for no reason?" Naruto asked skeptically, trying to highlight how ridiculous she was sounding. She stared away from him, into the brush, and then up to the stars; anywhere she could look that wasn't in his general direction. Naruto sighed. "What's the real reason?"

"Screw you!" She snarled defensively. "What about you, huh? Anbu? Or should I say former-Anbu?" She asked smugly.

Naruto shrugged calmly. "I am a former Anbu from Konoha. I'm not denying that," He retorted quietly.

"Oh? Then what are you denying? You left your village for no reason?" She asked, mockery evident in her tone.

"Well I did leave for a reason," He replied neutrally. "Unlike you, apparently."

"Really? So why did you leave?" She asked immediately, pouncing on his admission.

Naruto opened and closed his mouth several times in rapid succession. Two could play this game. "Well, since you don't trust me, and I don't particularly trust you, perhaps we should go our separate ways."

"What?" She asked, startled.

"Well, I have no reason to trust you, and despite my saving your life, you don't trust me. This… this partnership won't work unless we trust each other to some degree," Naruto explained quietly. That was how it had been with Hideki. And how it had worked with his other partner, Sai.

"Well maybe we shouldn't work together!" She huffed angrily. "Maybe I should just leave!"

"Feel free," Naruto replied icily. She froze, as if she'd been slapped. "Maybe you're not getting it, but you just ran away from your village. As of this moment, you're a traitor to Taki. If they catch you, they will kill you," Naruto remarked, his icy tone showing no signs of warming, even slightly. "But if you think you're better off on your own than with an admitted ex-Anbu… well, feel free to leave." Silence. "Those two jounin I faced earlier- the male's strength was Ninjutsu, but he had little to no awareness of his surroundings. Hence the traps. The woman, on the other hand, was a skilled Genjutsu user- she tried to put me under twice in a minute- but had never faced an actual fūinjutsu user before. And of course, I tracked them for several hours without their noticing me. But if you don't need my help, my skills, my expertise- then please leave."

Fū stared down at the ground. "No. I… I need you," She admitted finally, her tone so quiet the wind almost drowned her voice out. Naruto stared at her, her eyes finally meeting his; blue boring into orange. "I… I can't survive on my own," She spat reluctantly, treating the words as if they were poison.

Naruto broke the stare. "Fine. I get that you have your secrets. Just know that I have mine. As long as you're okay with that, we can work together," He said quietly. She nodded resolutely. Silence. "Okay then. Now where should we go?"

"Go?"

"Go," He repeated. "We can't stay here," Naruto continued calmly. "Taki's forces are too close by. As are Oto's. And you never know when Leaf Nin might come snooping around," He finished.

"So we need to leave?" In hindsight, that should have been obvious. "Where can we go?" She asked, fear creeping into her voice.

"Well… I don't really know," He admitted finally. "I mean, Rain, Waterfall, and Leaf are out, for obvious reasons. Then, because of their close ties, Sand is out at well. Ame is in a state of civil war, as is Kiri. Rock… well, we have a troubled history, to put it mildly." He certainly couldn't tell her about the numerous intelligence gathering, sabotage, and assassination missions he'd undergone against them. "Wave… not there. Very unstable. Close to Konoha. And we'd attract a lot of attention. Snow is in a very similar situation. The Land of Iron… we'd attract too much attention. Tea country… too close to Konoha. Then there are other assorted minors we could… no, we'd probably attract too much attention. Most of the very minor powers… lack of people… easy to survey us," He muttered quietly. "Cloud…"

"You want us to head to Kumo?" She asked, appalled.

"I don't know yet. I really don't like the idea of serving the power-hungry Raikage, in his quest for military might," Naruto replied. "Any preferences?"

She thought for a second. "Do you think we could blend into Kumo?" She asked reluctantly.

"Once we get in, it should be very easy to hide in plain sight," Naruto replied. "Getting in is the tricky part though. Hmm…" He glanced at her, considering. "Could you play a decent damsel in distress?"

"What?"

"If we do this, then I'm going to need you to play the damsel in distress to my mature persona." She stared at him in confusion. "We have to pretend something like… bandits attacked our family and we're the only ones left."

"But we look nothing alike!" She sputtered indignantly. "Won't that tip them off immediately?"

"Not really. We just say bandits hit our town. It was a small one- ten to twenty people- and we're the only survivors. We're pretty sure of that," Naruto finished. "It could work, because rural farming communities like the one we're going to pretend to be from get picked off all the time. And it is a cover that requires no names, identification, and just really good acting."

Fū shook her head. "It just… isn't that a story anyone could use? And they are supposed to be pretty paranoid. Do you really think a sob story is enough to get us through the gates? And if it does, won't we be watched like hawks?"

"Oh, we'll be watched alright," He warned her. "But we will have to lay low. Hmm…" He thought for a second. "Do you now a way we could acquire a nice sum of money really fast? Because it would help a lot if we had access to money. And I mean more than we picked off those ninjas who were pursuing you," He explained. Yes, if they just had a bit of money, they could buy a place, set up a shop, and pretend to be civilians. And it would certainly reduce suspicion.

Fū considered the idea for a long moment. "All right," She agreed finally. "I think it could work. And, well…" She reached into her pocket, "When I ran away, I… I, uh, 'took' some money. I thought as long as I had money, I could survive," She confessed reluctantly, placing the stack of Ryo in front of him. Naruto flipped through it, and looked at the money they'd gotten earlier. "Okay. I think we have just enough to make this work. If not, well, we can always supplement it," He said quietly, with a dark edge to his tone. He looked up at the bright white moon overhead; it must be pretty late. "Get some sleep, Fū. We're probably going to have a long couple of weeks. This is the most peace we're going to get for a while," Naruto warned, lying down in his sleeping bag.

Fū laid down in her own. "Why is that?" She asked quietly.

"Because, over the next few weeks, we'll be traveling to Kumo. Then, once we arrive; constant questions, constant surveillance. So you're going to need to be ready," He told her bluntly.

She shook her head, not that he could see. "Don't worry about me. Just worry about yourself." Yet she couldn't quite keep the fear she felt for her future out of her tone. She… she was definitely in over her head.

'I do worry, Fū. More than I ever thought I could,' He thought quietly as she fell asleep.


End file.
